Masters of the Universe Snakes in the Grass
by The Sid Kid
Summary: A new look at the MOTU mythos, starting just after Randor's promotion to the throne and continuing until I'm satisfied. Feel free to respond with comments after reading.
1. Default Chapter

The two moons of Eternia rise to their respective zeniths. Across the vast landscape of this often war torn planet, creatures of all shapes and intelligence inhabit the various environmental dwellings that Eternia offers. The planet itself is divided into two large landmasses, separated by a vast and rather treacherous ocean, with creatures every bit as lethal as ones who trod the land. The rulers of this planet reside in the Eternian Royal Palace within the city of Eternos; however, their rule is always subject to question, as has been the case recently.

~~~

In the throne room of the palace, King Randor paces uneasily, small divots beginning to form in the plush rug that rests underneath his feet. The still fairly young warrior has only recently been placed in the monarchy due to a move by the elders of Eternia. Surrounding him are some of his most trusted soldiers and warriors from around the land who have pledged their allegiance to his rule. Warriors such as the mighty RamMan, Mekaneck of the northern quadrant of the city of Eternos, as well as the tornadic avenger SyKlone. Standing impatiently halfway up the staircase to the throne was Keldor, Randor's brother and Duke of Eastern Territories. Below him stood Randor's most trusted servants, the inventor Duncan: Man at Arms of the castle, as well as Teela who was only recently promoted to captain of the guard for bravery in battle. All of them waited with baited breath to find out what the king would have to say on the resurgence of the Snake Men. King Randor though, never felt the need to offer a rushed thought in the midst of ever-recurring dire circumstances. It was simply best to think out the best course of action, to refrain from hasty...and oftentimes unwise judgements.

The Snake Men themselves had inhabited Eternia long before anything else ever did. It is a period of time referred to in Eternian history books as 'Preternia.' During that time, reptiles ruled the earth. Not simply the dragons and wyverns that still existed today, but the same sentient, calculating creatures who now resided in Snake Mountain. Led by their zealous king, Hiss, they would stop at nothing until it was once again their law that governed what was and was not done on Eternia. All of the people gathered in the Eternian throne room tonight were determined to see that that day would never come. 

Keldor takes a few steps down, though still staying a couple of steps above the likes of Teela and Duncan. They were mere servants, and as such, should never be at eye level with one such as he. "Randor! The Eternian populace grows weary of waiting for a royal response. We should gather our forces and eradicate the Snakemen before they grow too numerous for our forces to handle. If we destroy them now, while still in their nest, we can assure the safety the people. Their children...your children." Randor turns to look at his brother. He fights to restrain tears. He had only a son now, Adam. His daughter was kidnapped before he ever really had a chance to know her. 

"I only have but one child now Keldor. And I would do anything in the world to protect him! None here would question that. However, the threat of the Snakemen remains to be seen. They have not attacked our people. They have remained in the division of Eternia that has been allotted to them. We cannot allow ourselves to become any more of a dictatorship than those who we fight against. Until I see a real threat posed to our people by them, I will not act any further." Randor turned to garner the approving nods of Duncan and Teela. Keldor took a step back. Oh how he wanted to blast his brother for his foolish grip on a state of peace that was not there. They needed to act now! But Keldor was also quite perceptive, and knew that his viewpoint was not held by the majority in the room. Therefore, he allowed silence to reign once more. Realizing that his while his king he made a decision, he was still looking for answers, Duncan steps forward to offer some.

"Your highness, if I may." Duncan reaches into one of the many storage spaces on his custom-made armor. When his hand once again comes out, it is filled with tiny glowing orbs. "What I have in my hand are technobiological seeds. I've programmed them to recognize and respond to reptilian presences within the borders of our city. If we plant them carefully in numerous places, I wouldn't see why the Snakemen would pose any real threat to us...not without giving us plenty of advance warning." 

Keldor's eyes widen at Duncan's invention. His meddling would only delay the inevitable. "Foolishness! These spyplants will only tell us of the Snakemens' arrival when they're right on top of us! And how long will it take before they mature!? Months? Weeks!!?"

"Days actually." Came the calm voice of the Man at Arms. To the side, Duncan could tell that his daughter Teela would like to offer the Duke some terse words of her own. Keldor was obviously not satisfied by this.

"You see? The Snakemen could be planning their move right now! By the time these plants tell us anything worthwhile, we'll be hauled away in chains, or decorating the castle after having been turned to stone!!!" Randor took several long strides and was immediately a step above his brother. Randor was constantly frustrated by his brother's inability to engage in intellectual debate without immediately resorting to ridicule of the opposing viewpoint. He had been that way since childhood. Duncan's idea made perfect sense to Randor.

"That is enough Keldor! Duncan, your plan will be made so...see to it. And as for you..."

"What is all the commotion for, Randor?" A soft voice interrupts.

The King turns to look upon the one voice in the kingdom who could calm him like no other, that of his wife Marlena. Beside her stood the castle security chief Tri-Klops as well as her Lady-in-Waiting, Evelyn. "Keep this up and you'll wake your son." 

"My son should already be awake. You know how I want him to be apart of making the vital decisions of a kingdom that will one day be his." Keldor sighed. Marlena raised an eyebrow at him.

"Of that I am all too aware, love. However you hold these midnight meetings more often than we have dinner together as a family, and Adam needs his rest. He has plenty of time to learn the ways of the kingdom, he is but a boy yet." Randor frowned slightly. Would she never let go?

"No. He is a man. While everything else you say may be true, a boy he is not." Randor replied calmly. Marlena looked her husband in the eye. It was all too typical for the two of them to make points that were either correct or debatable during the course of their often mild arguments. It was why she cherished their relationship. As did he. They smiled at each other, indulging for a moment to give the other a peck on the lips. Triklops scanned the room with his intangible eye, which allowed him to see through solid objects. His eye settled on one corner of the room. On the other side of the wall, carefully hidden from view, a striped snake lay carefully on the floor. Shifting to his destructive eye, Triklops fires a blast at the wall. The members of the royal court gasp.

"Your highness, a spy has infiltrated our domain." Trikops says as the king looks to him for an explanation. Even now the snake was slithering down a side corridor. Seeing that there was no time to waste on plans, Randor moves.

"Retrieve the creature!" Randor shouts as his other warriors move ahead of him and out through the hole Triklops made. Keldor makes his way to the Queen and her handmaiden, not wasting an opportunity to make a case in point. 

"You see!? And where there's a spy, there could well be an attack force! Come, your majesty, to the safety of your quarters." Queen Marlena takes the hand of her lady in waiting and proceeds to the door that leads to her chamber.

~~~

In one of the side hallways, gold and silver walls stand in strict geometrical patterns. Draped with rich tapestries and paintings of the royal family. The only thing out of place is the large viper that pokes its head around the corner before gliding down the hallway. A blast sizzles the air directly above it, causing a piece of the wall to crumble before it. This causes the snake to rise up for a moment, prepared to strike, before proceeding into and through the rubble. "It's this way, I saw it!" Comes the anxious voice of Duncan. He had never had a thing for snakes. But his duty to protect the kingdom took precedence over such silly fears. Dashing down the hallway, Duncan attempts to stop in time, but fails as he runs directly into his daughter Teela as well as Fisto, who had been running from either side of the T-shaped corridor. Duncan quickly rises to his feet, smoothing out the thick moustache before reactivating the energy clip on his blaster. "Didn't you see it? It just went the direction that you came from?" Man at Arms said, exasperated. Teela looked at her father quizzically. 

"No, I didn't see it."

"Not at all?" Duncan said, clearly confused by the fact that his daughter could not see such a brightly colored creature.

"Let's keep moving then, that thing obviously wants out of the palace, now that we know its here." Teela said as she looked past her father back down her on hallway. Man at Arms motioned two fingers forward, signaling the trio to run down the corridor.

~~~

In his own private chamber, the young prince, Adam sits awake in his bed, listening to the pounding of footsteps as they grow steadily louder and softer in relation to their distance. Something interesting was going on. It wasn't a battle, or guards would have entered his room. No, this was something decidedly less risky. And because of that, he felt even more tempted to go exploring without the fear of any serious repercussions from his parents were he to be caught. Adam's pet since childhood, a forest colored, striped feline named Cringer, carefully hopped up onto Adam's bed, settling in beside his master. Adam stroked the chin hairs of his cat, which was easily as big as he was. "Whaddya think's goin' on out there Cringe? Huh? Something interesting?" Cringer looked up at him with eyes that seemed to say 'Nothing I want to be involved in, thank you.' Adam tussled Cringer's mane a little and then threw the sheets off his bed. " That's what I thought. Let's go check it out. Come on, move it ya big lug." Cringer reluctantly got up, stretching out his legs and giving his fur a couple of licks before hopping off the bed and following his young master, who had already made his way to the door. The kid always wants to go out and be in the action. 'Why can't he just sit back and watch?', the cat wondered to himself. Adam took a step outside, checking for the remote possibility of danger, and then took off in a small jog down the hallway, Cringer tagging along at an even pace.

~~~

In another part of the castle, Ram Man met up with another armored defender of Eternia by the name of Extendar. Together with SyKlone, the trio searches through every nook and cranny of the armory, remaining totally clueless of the fact that the quarry they are pursuing had no intention of remaining hidden in the palace for long. "Here little snakey, come out, come out wherever ya are...ol Rammy just wants ta squish ya!" Extendar turns away from the suit of armor he is scouring, appreciating more of the detail of the armor itself rather than looking for some silly snake. 

"Ram Man, would you be a good lad and try not to be so vulgar. Hypothetically, if you **were** to stumble upon the reptilian in question it would be a disservice to our mission here to 'squish' it." Extendar states matter-of-factly. SyKlone grins and floats over to where the two armored warriors stand. 

Hey now, if 'Rammy' stumbles onto **anything**, it's gonna be 'squished'!" SyKlone says with a grin.

"Is that a crack about my weight stickboy?" RamMan says with a grunt, as he looks behind a preternian Repton shield. The lower half of SyKlones torso begins to spin, lifting him into the air. 

"Nah, cause if it was, the only crackin' you woulda heard would be the floor just before you went crashin' into the basement!" SyKlone flies over, giving Ram Man a small noogie on his armored head before flying off to another part of the corridor. Ram Man attempts to swat him away. Once SyKlone is gone, Ram Man's mouth curls into a slight grin. 

~~~

Tri-Klops was the only one out of the lot who had been able to keep an eye on the reptilian intruder. However, there was no real motivation to keep up the pursuit. Not compared to the motivation he had to let the creature go. The sooner the spy returned to its master, the more likely a battle would soon come. A nothing felt quite as enjoyable as a good war. He watches as the snake slithers out through a small crevice where the designers left just enough of an angle that slender creatures like serpents could easily glide in and out. Just one of the many holes in the structure that symbolized Randor's rule. In an effort to keep up the image of pursuit, Tri-Klops walks steadily down the same pathway he was following.

~~~

Inside the Queen's Chamber Keldor looks about nervously. Partly to appear concerned about the safety of the Queen, but also about what steps to take next, now that there had been an actual snake in the palace. While the appearance of the snake had not been due to any planning on his behalf, it did serve his purposes for it to have appeared. Hopefully it would show Randor that the Snake Men could not be taken lightly and force his hand in regards to how they be handled. With them out of the way, it would be one less obstacle Keldor would have to face once he maneuvered himself onto the throne of Eternia. Seeing this as an opportunity not to be passed upon, Keldor approaches the Queen, who is now sitting on the corner of her bed. "Your highness, I would be remiss to not take this chance to speak with you about the current state of affairs in Eternia, our beloved city of Eternos in specific..."

"Spare me Keldor. I am all too aware of what your specific agenda is, and I can assure you that it is a viewpoint that I do not share." Marlena eyed the Duke suspiciously. Ever since her husband's father had chosen his youngest son, Randor, to be king, Keldor had been enraged. It was an ever-present state of family unrest that Marlena tried her best to keep out of the notice of the public eye. Keldor looks at Marlena, and then turns to Evelyn, before returning his gaze to the queen. 

"I understand your highness. I fear you, like your husband, shall discover the true nature of a reptile far too late. I pray your son not suffer the same fate as your daughter." Keldor said quietly, attempting a mock show of concern. Marlena however, was not pleased with the sound of such a threat, veiled though it may have been. 

"You will not speak to me of Adora, nor Adam! I know what is best for my children!" The queen states defiantly. Keldor is taken aback by Marlena's vociferousness over the issue. Turning to exit the room, he slips a few coins from the folds of his robes to the hand of the Lady-in-Waiting. 

"Speak to her, Evelyn, she must see." Keldor was not sure what inclined him to expose part of his underbelly to the likes of the queens handmaiden with such a brazen bribery attempt, but he could not deny that oftentimes during one of the many midnight military meetings, that Evelyn had nodded her head repeatedly during his own speeches, while remaining still and austere during the peace-loving soliloquies of many of the other members. He had to get through to Randor though, and Marlena was now the best way to do that.

~~~

On one of the silver-angled walls of the castle, a rustling in the adjacent garden could be heard, ever so slightly. In the greenery, a long multicolored serpent climbs through one of the small crevices and out into the open. Surrounded by darkness, it knows exactly where it is going. Returning to its source just as naturally as a frost-mammoth makes its yearly journey to the Ice Mountains. In an out of the way area, the Snake Man warrior known as Snakeface sits anxiously awaiting the arrival of his serpentine spy. 

In the distance he can see it crawling forth from the undergrowth, no other individuals chasing it as he had originally expected. Snakeface lies down on the ground, getting eye level with the terrain. The snake itself continues its path, making a beeline directly for Snakeface's...face. The gorgon warrior waited patiently. The snake, now only a few feet away, lifted its head off the ground. Picking up the pace, the snake pitched forward, directly into the man's eye. Snakeface stood up, his eye socket seemingly devouring the snake head first. Slowly the snake writhed its way entirely into the warrior's head. Snakeface instantly began to receive messages of everything the viper had seen and heard. "Exsssellent. Our highness will be pleased to learn of their plans. I must make haste back to the mountain."

~~~

Adam holds his torch, walking carefully through the fresh grass, his faithful feline using the same tender steps only a few feet behind him. He had crept past RamMan, SyKlone and another armored fellow earlier. They were easy enough to get past. Teela though was an entirely different story. She seemed to have a sixth sense for knowing wherever he was. She had looked directly at him as he peered through a pair of peepholes. Whether she had actually not seen him or had seen him and simply not said anything was a mystery to him. Whatever allowed him to continue his exploration though was fine with Adam; however, he was beginning to think that this particular night out was just a false alarm. Turning back and kneeling to stroke Cringer a couple of times, Adam speaks, "Well Cringe, I think we've done just about everything we can do out here. Wanna go back to bed?" The cat looks up at him, his eyes reflecting the light off the torch, and bobs his head up and down ever so slightly. Adam grins. "I thought you'd say that. Alright, let's go to bed." 

Adam gets on his feet and turns to head back when suddenly his field of vision is filled with the face of an incredibly hideous man. As least he seemed like a man. His head bore an ornate black helmet, with a serpent rising to a crest. His face though, was a sea of serpentine scales, his eyes the same slit-like pupils of any other reptile. There is a reason the warrior he now stood nose to nose with was known as Snakeface. From every orifice in the creature's face, snakes began to pour out, writhing in a state of suspension from the man's face, much like the many that now rose from the top of his helmet like hair. Adam quickly turned away, remembering only vaguely the lore of the Snakemen's powers. Cringer, though, was not so fortunate as to have attended that lesson. Looking up and growling at the reptilian creature, it turns to face him, the eye sockets containing the snakes beginning to glow the instant the two make eye contact. Cringer's growl is silenced as his face turns to stone. Like a venom coursing through the cat, the rest of his body follows suit and slowly turns into a statuesque piece of granite. Adam turns to see his best friend, now frozen in front of him. Not caring now about the fact that the same fate could befall him, Adam turns to confront the Snakeman, only to be struck across the face with some sort of hard rod. 

Snakeface looks down at the young man. Probably a squire of some sort. He was a bit large for a squire though. Whatever the case, it would be best not to kill him. King Hiss had specifically ordered this to be a surveillance mission only. Turning, the Snakeman disappears off into the village just outside of the castle. He would just need to make use of his limited magical abilities to produce a portal to the other side of the world, where Snake Mountain lie. It would only be a good run before he reached the Banshee Forest, and the comfort of Snake Mountain in the midst of it all. Hiss's disruptive spells prohibited him, and anyone else, from teleporting further into the snake border.

~~~

Randor quietly enters into his bedchamber. A good distance away, he can see his beautiful wife lying fast asleep. It had been a disappointing evening. He never enjoyed the squabbles he had with Keldor, as seemingly ritualistic as they were. If only he could see that going to war continuously would not establish them as anything other than tyrants. And the Zodakkian had warned them, during a visit that seemed like ages ago now, that no dictatorship would be tolerated on Eternia, no matter what the ideals were of those who held the power, be they good or evil. 

Even the search for the spying serpent had been a failure, with all but one team reporting back that they had not even seen the reptile that Triklops fired at. One team had seen the serpent in question, but had failed to acquire it. It was surely going to report back to Hiss about their new defense system. What effect that would have on future events, Randor could only guess. As the king stands in front of the full-length mirror, changing into his sleeping attire, the silence is broken by the soft voice of his wife. "Randor, darling...would you please come to bed now. An entire day awaits for you to think about everything that has gone on tonight. But you will need your rest to be able to provide good judgement on such matters." Randor smiles lightly, turning and making his way to the bed. 

"As is often the case, you're right." He kisses her lightly on the forehead and starts to climb into bed. Suddenly, a 'thwap' is heard on the chamber doors. The sound causes Marlena to jump slightly. Randor is instantly ready to protect his wife from whatever is on the other side of the door. Unsheathing a dagger from underneath his pillow, Randor walks towards the door. Whatever it was, it was not trying to break the door down. Randor presses his ear against the door, listening for any conspicuous noises.

Nothing. 

Randor turns the heavy locks with a series of metal clanging noises. Slowly the door opens, with the weight of a person behind it. Prince Adam almost collapses into his father's arms. Partly in shock after seeing what was done to his friend, but mostly reeling from whatever that Snakeman had struck him with. Randor looks down at Adam with concern, his wife already at his side, kneeling, with an arm around her son. "Adam. What has happened?" Adam looks up at Randor, his eyes tearstained. 

"A snake warrior, father. He...he froze Cringer. We need to do something...do something now..." Adam says, tinges of fear and authority fighting for control in his voice. Marlena lays a hand on the gash that covers a good amount of Adam's left cheek. 

"Adam, honey, we need to take care of this wound...I'll call Evelyn, she'll..."

"No! This will heal. Cringer may not! We have to figure out how to turn him back." Adam states defiantly. Whatever had happened to him was trivial compared to what his feline friend now faced. Adam wondered if he had lost him forever. Randor places a hand on Adam's shoulder. 

"Son. I will go and speak with Duncan now, and see if there is anything he can do. Until then, I want you to go with your mother and let her fix you up." Adam sits in silence for a moment. There was nothing more he could do, as much as he wanted to.

"...alright dad."Adam says, a hint of defest in his voice. Randor and Marlena hug their son. Adam gets up and walks off with his mother. Randor looks at them both for a moment before exiting his chamber to go wake up Duncan. He knew how important this was for his son. That alone outweighed any need for sleep.

~~~

The howls of the Banshee Forest are as unnatural as the name of the location implies. To one who has been trained in the ways of darkness though, they are no more unnatural than the cries of dragons during mating season. Snakeface steps through the portal and comes through a clearing, sitting in the sunlight, a large series of mountains sit, casting ghastly shadows on the surrounding meadows. One exceptionally large mountain marks the name of the location, as a large stone serpent sits coiled around its peak like a constrictor enveloping its next meal. King Hiss would be anxious to hear of what the gorgon had discovered.

~~~

Entering into Snake Mountain, one would be welcomed by an array of vile odors. The noxious smell of incredibly large storehouses of serpent venoms. The smell of decayed trespassers, unfortunate enough to have stumbled anywhere near this nest of vipers. As one progressed deeper into the castle, the smells would become decidedly more fresh, although distinctively serpentine in nature, if such a classification could be made. Snakes of all sorts, wander the corridors. Some very sentient, and bipedal. Others with no evolutionary developments since the days of preternia other than a connection with the lord of this house.

The throne room of this forbidden nest is filled with activity. To one side, a few dancers of both genders writhe in a rhythmic motion with each other, their appendages acting like extensions of their own snakelike bodies. 

At a nearby wall, a lady cannot suppress her natural urges, as uncultured as it was to eat unprepared food. A rat crawls along the wall, apparently unaware of how unwise it was for any member of their species to find their way into this place. The woman looks at it curiously...hungrily. What a rarity for a creature like that to have made it this far into the bowels of their home. Her hand lashes out as quickly as one would expect of a serpent strike. The animal shrieks. The lady holds it in her scaly hand, rubbing an iridescent purple fingernail against its soft fur. The rodent struggles in vain to free itself from the predatory grip. In one motion, the lady extends her jaw slightly, allowing herself to swallow the rat whole. Just another snack.

For someone to actually get to the throne room, they would have to proceed deeper, past all of the entrapments of the serpent society, and descend into the royal pit. Only but a few had access to the lair of King Hiss. Inside the room, one man sits in a chair, draped in black and emerald green robes. Lining and markings of the purest gold mark the robe of serpentine royalty. Hiss himself is a dark sorceror, with a past as shrouded in darkness as his pit. His face is human by choice, its natural state as snakelike as his brethren. His eyes though, forever retain their slitted serpent's appearance. They are hidden though, as is most of his face, in the darkness provided by his hood. To one side, Lasher and Rattlor stand by the large double doors. Lasher has been his most trusted warrior ever since he ascended to the throne, and now served as his vizier. Rattlor was simply efficient, by far his most effective warrior. Only his refusal to speak kept him from rising to a more trusted position in Hiss's eyes. 

The only light in the room is provided by the eerie glow of an unknown source that emanates from a pool in the center of the room. It spreads its greenish gold glow over everything in the room. Hiss sits in thought. To have creatures ruling over a land that was rightfully theirs was unnatural. It was an evolutionary oddity that Hiss planned to deal with. The Snake Men had existed for many millennia, but never before had they possessed the benefit of a leader such as he. With his ingenuity, the Snakemen could arise once again.

The door to the chamber opens slightly. A nondescript snake soldier takes precisely one step into the dim room. With confidence in his voice, he addresses his lord, "Your highness, the warrior Snakeface returns with news from Eternia." Hiss' slitted eyes dart up quickly. He was anxious to know of even the most minute detail of Randor's latest meeting.

"Show him in." Hiss replies coldly. The soldier bows and exits the chamber. After a few moments, the gorgon steps into the throneroom, walking directly before Hiss and then kneeling before him. "Rise, gorgon, what news have you from Eternia?"

"Much my lord. The disssention in their ranks grows ever more prevalent. 'Twill be a tool we can use to our advantage when it comes time to ssstrike. But more importantly, their inventor has created a new a new tool which will allow them to detect invaders before any direct harm can come to their palace." Snakeface fell silent, curious as to how his king would deal with this curious setback to any direct battle plans. Hiss on the other hand, knew all too well how to proceed. In an instant, Hiss had chosen the most logical course.

"I want a sample. Not until we study whatever it is they have invented, can we counteract its value." Hiss turns his attention to Lasher and Rattlor. "You will assist Snakeface by any means necessary. I care not how you come by these new detectors, but they halt our progress...and I grow increasingly impatient...find them." The warriors bow before their king and exit the throne room. A war is brewing.


	2. To Save a Friend

"Perhaps Keldor is right. If only for the continued protection of your children, perhaps we should consider striking down the snake men, preemptively." Marlena finishes dabbing away the last bit of dried blood from Adam's cheek and turns to face Evelyn. The queen was surprised that her lady-in-waiting was offering her political advice...but they had shared so much history together, she could not be surprised.

"I thank you for you counsel, Evelyn. It is an issue that, I admit, I too wrestle with on a daily basis. But until I can come to a conclusive decision in my own mind, I will not attempt to advise my husband on any course of action." Marlena sighs, returning her attention to Adam. Evelyn approaches, taking the dirtied cloth and providing the queen with a fresh one. Adam reaches up, affectionately grabbing ahold of Marlena's hand.

"But mother, we...we can't just go an destroy a race of people just because we see them as potentially dangerous." Adam says, genuine concern in his voice. He could not explain it, but there was a deeply rooted compassion for all things that he just could not suppress. Marlena strokes her son's hand affectionately and then runs her hand through his hair.

"Oh Adam...part of me knows that. But there's another part of me that will do anything to make sure I don't lose you." Marlena says. 

"But mom...my life isn't worth the lives of lots of peoples...I, I just can't accept..."

"Adam, shhhh, nothing's going to happen now. You've been through a traumatic evening. But I also know you won't be able to sleep, so why don't you see if there's anything you can do to help Duncan cure Cringer." The Queen offers supportively. Adam nods and then the two of them offer up a gentle hug. Adam gets up from the med-table where he sat and proceeds out as the automated door hisses and slides out of his way. Marlena stands there for a moment. So much was going on. And somebody around here needed to be able to think clearly the next day, and by the Sorceress she was going to get some sleep. Turning, she smiles warmly to Evelyn, who was finishing cleaning up the med-area.

"I'm off to bed, I suggest you do the same...but as noone else around here will take my advice, I suspect you won't either." She winks playfully at Evelyn who returns the gesture as the queen takes her leave. The warm smile on the lady-in waiting's face is soon replaced by a sinister grin.

~~~

"Turned to stone?" Duncan asks inquisitively of his friend Randor as they walk down one of the hallways of the palace in the dead of night.

"That's correct, friend. Apparently Adam's pet came into contact with a snake man who was lurking outside. The resulting effect apparently is petrification...literally." Randor shook is head in disbelief after he had made the comment. This was no time for joking. As they arrive at the large metallic doors, Duncan lays a supportive hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I will do everything I can to rectify this, your highness."

"Thank you Duncan, I know you will." The king turns and proceeds down the hallway. Adam's pet would be in the best possible hands. It was a terrible situation...one that only made him further consider his brother Keldor's words. Each guard offers a nod of respect as he passes by. Whatever the case may be, it was time for Randor to place himself in the best possible hands...those of his wife.

Man-at-Arms steps into his laboratory. Several of the palace guardsmen stood around a table. The king was serious. There on the table sat Adam's pet feline. The large, stone cat was huge. He was impressed that his men were able to lift it up onto the table. 

"Alright folks, this is gonna be a long night. I want you guys to head to the library and dig up everything you can find on petrification, the snake men, their powers...anything that will help us return Cringer to normal...but also so we can know how to fix this problem if it ever occurs again." The soldiers in the room salute and exit, leaving Duncan alone with the statuesque Cringer.

~~~

On such an eventful night, it would appear as if almost noone was in the mood to get any sleep. That assertion is certainly true of the king's brother. In a spacious set of chambers that have been granted him, the midnight oil has been burning for several extra hours. The doors are sealed. If nothing else, Keldor's paranoia ensures that noone will enter his room in the dead of night. Nor would some unsuspecting fool just happen to wander in whilst he was in the midst of engaging in practices which would certainly be looked down upon.

Practices that, even now, had his complete attention in the lowest level of his chambers. In that corner of the room, Keldor stands. His fingers have an inhuman violet glow to them. He offers up various words, which are meant to connect the caster with the magical powers he seeks to control. Of course, much more practiced sorcerers can perform great feats with but the flick of a wrist. As an apprentice though, he recognized his need to master the basics before moving onto better things. A glowing orb appears in front of the Duke of Eternos. He grins, appreciative of the minute magical feat he has just performed. Something begins to appear in the center of the orb. It is a small white dot. Keldor purses his lips curiously, making note of the magical anomaly. Through no effort of his own, the small dot begins to revolve rapidly, and grow. Ridges begin to form on the surface of the white dot, and it begins to take on an almost flesh-like texture. The Duke stands in awe. He knew his abilities as a magician were growing by the day. He would teach his brother...no, all of Eternia how the snake men should really be handled.

The white dot is no longer a dot at all. It is a face. A very demonic looking face, in Keldor's estimation, but a face nonetheless. The ears on the side of it's head are pointed. In the middle of the thing's head, a crest of skin formed several distinct ridges which disappeared behind the creature's skull. Keldor's eyes widen in amazement. He had actually conjured something up! The duke was ecstatic, there was no limit to what he could do if he could harness the powers of this creature. Just then a distinct and very audible banging can be heard on the duke's chamber doors. "Bones of mermen, who dares to rap on my chamber doors at this hour?!"

The instant Keldor's attention is drawn away from the face in the glowing orb, it fades away. "No, no! Come back here this instant!" Keldor implores commandingly. But all for naught. He was left alone in the darkness of his corner. He slams his thick book of black magic closed and tromps towards the door.

~~~

Duncan looks curiously at the stack of books that his soldiers have brought to him. "And this is all you could find?" He asks.

"Yessir." The lieutenant replies. "We scoured the royal library." Duncan ruffles his thick moustache, sliding his fingers down it and tweaking it thoughtfully. 

"Very well then. You all are dismissed. And thank you." The men nod and turn to leave the room. Man-at-Arms turns to the stack of books, beginning to arrange them for what was turning out to be a very long night. The door hisses open one more time, and Duncan turns, figuring one of his guardsmen was going to offer his help in his late night studies. But it was not so. In the doorway stood the timid figure of the prince of Eternia, Adam. Ducan smiled, waving the boy in. Boy? The young man was thin, yet well-defined, befitting an image of a young prince. _But, he will be a man soon...very soon if I'm not mistaken._

"Adam, my lad, I already know why you're here...and let me assure you I'm going to do everything for your friend Cricket."

"Cringer."

"Right...Cringer. Well, anyway, how about you return to bed and I'll get right to work on it." Man-at-Arms offers supportively, but he could see the boy was going to have none of it. Even now, he had walked to the edge of the table, and stroked the now rock solid area under Cringer's chin.

"If I may, sir, I'd like to stay up with you and help you on you research. I'll do anything to bring my friend back." Adam says, concern bleeding through. Duncan twitches his moustache, taking a couple of thoughtful sniffs. 

"Hmm...I can't see any harm in that." Duncan says as he reaches over, grabbing one of the thinner out of the stack of books. "Here ya go, start digging through that." Adam's eyes widen as he looks at the cover, _Theoretical Petrification: A Complete History_. He then covers up his obvious shock with a confidant smirk.

"No probs, Duncan." He picks it up with one hand. His arm obviously begins to strain at the weight of the book and is soon helped out by the other appendage. Adam walks over to a desk and begins to page through the contents, always casting a furtive glance to his petrified pet. Duncan smiles as he flips through his own book of chemicals, hoping to find one that could have a restorative effect on stone. The boy was coming along nicely, he expected great things from him in the future. The boy had a drive similar to that of his own daughter, Teela. But that was neither here nor there. He too takes a moment to look at the stone cat before returning to his book. _Don't you worry Crumpet, we'll get you back to normal._

~~~

Keldor throws open the doors to his chambers, only to see his most trusted accomplice standing there, the lovely Evelyn Powers. However, she had just interfered with one of his biggest magical breakthroughs! "What is it, woman!? I'm busy!" Evelyn simply sneers as she pushes past the Duke and into the room. She turns confidantly, a playful smirk on her face.

"I spoke with the queen...and I thought you might like to know my assessment of the conversation as soon as possible. But...I can see you're not the mood for such trivial things, so I'll take my leave." She begins to make her way towards the door once again. Keldor grabs her forcibly by the arm, jerking her over to where he stood. With his free arm, he slams the doors closed, locking them.

"Don't toy with me, harlot, or I'll have a nasty 'accident' befall you at my earliest convenience." Keldor says, a legitimately sinister tone in his voice. Evelyn noticed that same tone, and the very real threat that stood ready to back up those dark words. In order to calm the prideful duke, she offered a humble bow, showing that she was ready to talk. He motioned for her to sit in a nearby chair, while he took a standing position behind a grand desk. All manner of technological screens sat in beneficial places on the desk, as well as magical artifacts. It was a hybrid of two radically opposed schools of thought; the superiority of technology versus the superiority of magic. In truth, Keldor subscribed wholeheartedly to neither, he simply wished to make use of the best of both. "So, what did my narrow-minded in-law have to offer?" Keldor asks curiously. Evelyn smirks, knowing full well that the talk she had with Marlena had went far better than she could have hoped for as brief as it was.

"She's not convinced that her husband is correct. She is devoted to the protection of her child...dare I say blindly so. Hah. Granted, she's not too thrilled with your ideas either...but...she is definitely more supportive of them than she lets on." 

Keldor sits calmly for a few moments, processing those words. Yes, if he could get the queen to support his ideas...then Randor would surely cave! Blasted women! At long last one of their breed was proving good for something. "Excellent. Well, I will simply have to see to it that the snake men truly **_are_** as dangerous as I have made them out to be." Keldor says with a grin on his face. He follows it with a triumphant, weasely little laugh. It was a very productive night for him indeed.

~~~

The morning sun bathes its warm rays over the city of Eternos. Almost on cue, faces here and there begin to peer from their various windows. In the midst of all its technological advancements, the sun was the only alarm these citizens needed to start their day. 

Within the royal palace, it is fairly similar, with many of the higher ranking officers just beginning to awake from their restful sleep. Soldiers who were up all night are relieved from duty and allowed to go to bed, a fresh squad taking up their various duties. In the midst of such a long period of peace, things had become quite routine. 

Some of the palace soldiers have begun "planting" Duncan's technobiological alarms. He had ordered them set out as soon as possible, especially in light of the recent breach of palace security by one serpent.

~~~

In one room in specific, an ambitious young warrior lies peacefully in her bed. Her name is Teela, and she is the daughter of Duncan. She is also far more than that, but whether she will discover such a destiny remains in question. For now, she simply serves in the palace royal guard, to the pleasure of her father and the royal family. She was arriving very quickly at the age of womanhood. 

She is awakened by the feeling of soft lips on her cheek. She smiles, but then soon the room is flooded with rays of sunlight and she pulls the covers up over her head. "Go 'way, I'm sleepin'!" She says playfully. The man who kissed her rips the sheets back, revealing her in her underwear. She screams happily and then covers her mouth in shock, not wanting the security forces to think she was being attacked. She pulls the covers back over her and punches the guy on the shoulder as he sits down on the corner of her bed. His name was Markus, and he was the Captain of the Eternian royal guard. For all intents and purposes, he was her boss. But they both knew it was more than that.

"Mornin' hun. You've got duty in about half a preton." He says mock-sternly. She looks up at him, giving him a salute.

"You betcha, I mean, umm, yes sir." She smiles at him coyly. He leans over and they kiss gently. She then pushes him away. "Now, if you'll excuse me, captain." She gets up, her sheets wrapped around her body, pushing him towards the door.

"Oh come on, like I haven't seen them before." He teases. Teela's jaw drops in shock as she gives him a final push out the door, closing it behind him. She enjoyed her relationship with him, but the last thing her father wanted was for her to be romantically involved with another soldier. Sure , they both understood all the risks. The weird hours, the lack of time, the ever-present danger of being eaten, incinerated, speared, fried, or executed. Only another soldier would understand all of that. But no, in the eyes of her father, he just couldn't imagine his little baby having to face the loss of a lover. _He can handle me serving as soldier...but he can't handle me dating one? Grrrrrrr, that man!_ She growls to herself as she walks over and begins to change into her battle armor.

~~~

Inside the palace laboratory, all is quiet. Duncan sits, paging through a book on the archives of Preternia. On the other side of the room, the young Prince sits, with a book in his hand as well, although it's turned sideways. He _almost_ looked awake. But among other things, the steady line of drool that connected his lower lip to the floor below him gave that notion away.

As if it had been wanting to all night, the book loosens itself from the young man's grip and falls to the floor. He is suddenly awakened by the sizeable thwack and looks around. Duncan chuckles slightly as Adam wipes the saliva stream away from his chin. 

"Long night, hmm?" The Man-at-Arms says humorously.

"Heh, umm, yeh." Adam says, not proud of the fact that he wasn't able to be of any help. Duncan's smile fades as he gets up and walks over to the young prince. He had provided enough humor. The gravity of this situation needed to be dealt with.

"Well, my young friend. You may not have been able to dig anything outta those books...but you were here by your friends' side...and he knows that. However...I **_have_** looked through these books...and I'm afraid I can't find anything in here that will help us, but..."

"**_WHAT_**?!?!!" Adam yells indignantly, rising to his feet. It was not like him to lose his temper like this...but it wasn't everyday you lost your best friend. "With all the stuff you got in here...you can't think of something to turn Cringer back?! You know what? This is crap...forget this!" Adam slams his fist against the wall, leaving an impressionable tinge of blood where the skin on the knuckles broke. He takes off running down the hallway. As he does, tears begin to stain his eyelids, but he makes no audible sound. He just wanted to be alone.

Man-at-Arms strokes his moustache thoughtfully. He would really have expected no less...kids at that age are just so brash...so quick to leap to conclusions. He knew all along that there was a viable alternative, his was simply reluctant to call upon it if he could handle the situation himself. Since it was clearly evident to him that he could not, he would have to make a trip to Castle Grayskull. 

~~~

Outside the city limits, the security team of Eternos is busy installing Duncan's new technobiological seeds. Randor had allocated ample funding for the Man-at-Arms' new project, hoping that the new invention would indeed keep them free of snake men intruders. Duncan's chief researcher, Galen Nycroft, looks over one of the glowing mechanical seeds curiously. He had never seen something quite like this. He was anxious to see how it would fare on its actual "field test". He chuckles lightly at the pun, glad that noone had heard him, before laying it into the hole he had dug.

~~~

In one of the uppermost sections of the Royal Palace, a Wind Raider sits juiced up and ready to go. Duncan steps out into the warm afternoon sunshine, the King and Queen steadily behind him.

"I cannot believe Adam acted that way!" King Randor said, a clear amount of shock in his voice.

"It's perfectly alright, your highness. Why if I were in his shoes...I couldn't imagine reacting any differently to the same news."

"Just the same, that's no way for a prince...a future king, to act!" Randor was almost seething. His tension is calmed by the supportive grasp of his wife as she entwines her arm in his.

"Duncan will handle it, darling. We simply need to let Adam have some time to calm down...and then tell him what is being done for his friend."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, your majesty." Duncan says with a grin. He was always impressed with how Marlena could calm Randor at a moment's notice. He gives them a slight bow before proceeding into the convertible aircraft. He begins his ascension and takes off into the clear blue sky. Randor gives his wife a small hug as they enter back into the palace together.

~~~

Several days pass...and seemingly, not much has happened. But in such a strange land, peace is often simply an illusion to provide time for those who intend to cause harm. Such is the intent of the snake men. Their king, Hiss, has no intentions of launching a full-scale war against the royal palace of Eternos. He has been trapped within the White Void for so long, that he has been able to ponder every nuance of his plans. In order for him to attain victory, he must strike only at the very last minute, ensuring the Eternians receive a lethal dose of his potent venom. 

Outside Snake Mountain, various descendants of their serpentine ancestors meander about. The atmosphere is hot, and quite humid, making the air almost liquid in nature. Optimum conditions for a race of beings who derive their health from their surroundings. Soon, more snake people gather. Emerging from every possible area around the large mountain, but more importantly, from several holes that lead down into the depths of the mountain itself. At first hundreds, which quickly become thousands, until finally there are certainly in excess of several hundred thousand of this reclusive, reptile race.

Eventually, their lord emerges from within the Mountain himself. He stands within the mouth of a giant, deceased yet preserved serpent, which had coiled itself around the mountain, giving it its name. The water that cascades down its mouth into the pool below is rumored to be the blood of the creature, mixed with the water of Eternia itself. Hiss levitates slightly above the flow of Blood Falls, and making use of a spell of amplification, allows his words to be heard in the minds of each and every one of his kin who were present this day.

"My children, I have gathered you here today...to remind you of the ever-present war that we must all fight. Many ages ago...we let the control of this planet slip through our fingers. Slowly but ever so surely, I have set events into motion that will assure Eternia's return to its rightful owners." A growing sound of hissing, almost like an oncoming tidal wave, rises and falls, as the snake people show their support to their king. He grins, looking down at them, having completely disregarded his human visage, he is now a stack of writhing serpents rise up and intertwine themselves from the pants of two seemingly human legs. The central, largest of the snakes in the midst continues to serve as his voice, though he is all of them, and they are all one with he himself. "Even now, I have sent some of our brothers and sisters to discern the nature of Eternos' defense capabilities. We will discover the holes in their oh so perfect walls...and then...I promise all of you, Eternia will be **_ours_**!"

The hissing sound rises and falls again as all of the writhing serpents that compose the snake king suddenly grin in unison. As he proceeds back into the Mountain, his sorcery wraps itself around him once again, providing him with the appearance of a normal, yet very wealthy, man.

~~~

As the Wind Raider approaches the ominous structure known as Castle Grayskull, Duncan adjusts the controls, bringing the swift vehicle in for a landing. He always hated how the mystical powers of the mysterious castle would disrupt and subsequently shut down the functioning mechanisms of anything that came to close. It was always an intellectual game he played with the Castle whenever he came here...to test and see if his latest operating system would allow him to fly right up to the front door. 

Today was not the day for one of those experiments though.

Checking to make sure his various armaments were in place and charged up, he began to make his way to the castle on foot. One could never be sure exactly what may jump out to assault a seemingly defenseless pedestrian. 

Or even a fairly well-defended one.

Being in rather good health for his age, he trekked the several mile hike in a little over a couple hours. The sun was just beginning its own trek into twilight as he began to see the famous gray-green stone that Grayskull was formed from. Set in a small clearing of the vast EverGreen forest, so named because of the fact that the leaves never changed their healthy green hue regardless of the weather, Grayskull radiates with the essence of the universe. Why this location had been so deemed as a storehouse of such power was a subject of debate between every Eternian scholar, from ancient times until now...none of whom have been able to come up with a testable answer.

A twig snaps.

Duncan turns immediately, his old soldier senses kicking in. His blaster drawn, he turns in the direction of the sound. Nothing. But he knows it was most certainly _something_. He takes a few more cautious steps through the forest. The foliage ahead of him rustles. He aims, firing several blasts into the thicket. The rustling stops. He raises an eyebrow quizzically as he cautiously makes his way to the gathering of bushes next to a tall, thick tree. He points his gun into the bushes, moving them around so he could see. He almost rolls his eyes in embarrassment as he comes across the fried carcass of some tiny, two-legged lizard. He hadn't had a meal in some time...as was tempted to cook it further, when an ear-shattering roar causes him to wince in pain. The pain in his ear is soon follow up by pain in his head as he is struck in the face by a sizeable, furry hand.

As he begins to shake the cobwebs from his dizzied state of mind, the Man-at-Arms turns his head up in order to get a good look at the creature that had just attacked him. The creature that now took a step towards him was one of the more threatening things he had yet to see in his well-traveled life. The being stood a good two-feet taller than him, covered in a thin layer of rusty tinged, brown fur. The ripples of thick, primal muscles could be clearly seen underneath the fur. The creature seemed to be wearing clothes of some kind, around his neck hung the carcass of another creature entirely, the giant teeth of some even more impressive creature protruded from the thick-layered fur armor. On its elbows and knees, it wore chafed leather pads where the horns protruded out. Blood stained the bottom, as an indicator of the fact that they were ripped from the creatures they were taken from, as well as stained on the top, indicating that this creature enjoyed impaling them into other, less-fortunate creatures. He was almost a man...yet conversely, almost a beast. 

Duncan could care less though, if it was going to try and kill _him_, than it was going to be _all_ dead. The Beast Man lunges forward, slamming his claws where Duncan's head had just been. The soldier dodges, rising to his feet, only to receive another shot to the face, sending him and his weapon spinning. The Beast Man sneers, readying for a second attack, when he smells something. He looks around for a moment, and then, into the thicket which Duncan had fired earlier. The beast fumbles through the foliage for a second, and then discovers the corpse of the bipedal lizard. It reaches down, picking up the toasted creature. It gives the lizard a gentle stroke, its snarls calming down to a dull growl. Man-at-Arms watches curiously as the Beast man displays some sort of compassion for the creature, at the same time readying some stun charges in his wrist compartments.

The Beast Man gently lays the creature on the ground, covering it with some soil. In a sudden jerking motion, his face is instantly trained back on Duncan. The expression is one of rage, a trail of saliva dripping down through clenched, sharpened teeth. The Beast reaches over, ripping a thick branch off of a nearby tree. Duncan jumps to his feet and begins to sprint towards the castle. As he does, he suddenly loses contact with the ground as he is swept up into the air. The Beast man lands on a series of thick branches, roughly tossing the slaughterer into the trunk of the tree. Duncan hits hard and slumps down, his legs hanging listlessly off the branches. The Beast takes another measured step forward, and then sends his fist crashing down.

Duncan had just enough recognition of where he was to put up his arms in an attempt to deflect the oncoming deathblow. As the mighty arm comes crashing down against his, he can hear the breaking of his left ulna, even through the armor he always wore on his forearms. However, the technology that was also contained therein, is also breached, and sends several thousand volts of electricity charging through the Beast man. It roars in rage, taking several steps back. Growling in a low threatening tone, the creature looks at him, directly in the eyes. "You'll regret this day, manthing" The Beastman says. In another instant, it is gone. 

Now _that_ was something that the old soldier was not prepared for. Sure, it wasn't uncommon, per se, for creatures to be able to talk...but it still always took him by surprise when they did so. Climbing down from the tree, he only hoped the Sorceress would tend to his broken arm as well as Adam's petrified cat.

~~~

Duncan approaches the jawbridge. As it had done the last time he visited here, it slowly lowered, allowing him to enter.

The interior of the palace was nothing like he expected the structure of all power in the universe to be. Even now, having been here several times, he sometimes expected to be greeted with lavish furnishings, walls carved of the finest stones and metals, everything just...perfect. But it was not so. Everything was drab. The banners that hung from the high ceilings were tattered and torn. There was a chill in the air, the walls almost slick with a fine layer of condensation. He could have sworn it was abandoned. But he knew better. 

Climbing several flights of stairs, he arrives at the epicenter of the castle, the Crystal Chamber. The doors fling themselves open, and he is instantly bathed in warmth. He had been favoring his arm the entire way here since that wild encounter...but now...the pain had vanished. In a distant corner of the room, he saw the woman with whom he had come to speak. The woman who had been entrusted to guard the powers of Grayskull. The light and power that emanated from the room reflected off of her silvery robes. Adorning her head was a headdress like that of a bird, with similar wings which flowed down the length of her arms. She turned towards the soldier, smiling warmly as he approached.

"Greetings Duncan, my friend. It has been some time." She says kindly.

"Greetings to you as well, Sorceress." He replies in kind. "I come to you with a problem." He says, in his business like tone. She nods, indicating for him to continue. "It seems as if Adam's pet...and best friend, Cringer, has been turned to stone under the powers of serpentine sorcery. We searched diligently for a cure, but could find none. I knew of no other option but to seek your counsel."

The Sorceress nods. The powers of the snake people were formidable indeed. "I am afraid my powers will not be able to reverse such finely honed skills...but, there are a race of beings who have been at war with the snake men for nearly as long as Eternia itself has been in existence."

"Who are these beings?" Duncan asks, concerned.

"The Avions, to the north. They are the perpetual enemy of the serpents, for their powers of petrification have no effect on them. Seek out their wisdom, it is the only hope for Adam's friend." The Sorceress says evenly. She wished there was more she could do to help, but her powers were practically nil, outside of Grayskull, and, as she said, her powers could not reverse those of the finely woven sorcery of the snake men. Duncan nods.

"I thank you for your counsel, Sorceress." He says, but stops. There was something else that was nagging on his mind. "I have another question for you...regarding the young prince, Adam." He says. The Sorceress smiles. It was apparent that he too could sense that the boy was destined to become something greater, that the potential for unlimited greatness lay bound up within his developing persona. She knew it as well, but not yet.

"I can sense the nature of your query, friend Duncan, but I can divulge nothing at this time. However, you have my assurances that your questions regarding his state of being will indeed be answered." She states. Duncan nods, begrudgingly accepting the cryptic responses he usually received from the Sorceress when he asked her of such things. Realizing that there was nothing more he could do save for return to the palace with the news he had acquired, he bows slightly and turns, heading towards the door. _I wish I didn't have to walk all the way back to the Wind Raider..._ In another flash of a moment, between the blinking of an eye, he was standing next to his vehicle. He grins, hopping into the aircraft, taking off quickly.

Stranger things had, and would continue to, happen.


End file.
